Letter from Richard B. Hull (April 1949)

hbh-96

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF EDUCATIONAL BROADCASTERS

Arces, Iowa
April 19ii9

TO: Station active members only and Officers and Directors

1 , »*e recently had a program experience at ?/0I which might have resulted very

unfortunately 0 The groups involved were the International Council of Christian
Churches and the American Council of Christian Churches, These groups are
respectively the international and national sections of a dissenting fundamental-
istic group who are comprised of such bodies as the "Bible Presbyterian Church”*
the "Carpus” Baptist church, etc. In other words, these groups retain the
title of the parent church but are something quite different.

Our contact with them came through the "American Council" when their local
secretary telephoned us saying the president of the International Council of
Christian Churches, Rem Carl A, Mclntire, Pastor of the Bible Presbyterian
Church, was making an Iowa tour, identified him as the president of the Inter¬
national group which met in Amsterdam, Holland, last year and requested per¬
mission for him to broadcast. This was granted,.

Subsequently I learned from the chairman of the local ministerial council, that
this group, the International Council of Churches, spent much of its effort in
trying to tear down the Federal Council of Churches whom they rail at as being
Communistic, and secondly that their Amsterdam meeting was called on the spur
of the moment and met two days ahead of the formal and well-known meeting of
the World Council of Churches, which was so well reported by NBC, CBS, etc.

Their approach, their letterhead, etc,, all tend to imply that T FEIR meeting was
the bonafide meeting, and that the World Council represented by the Federal
Council from the U,S, and planned ahead for several years and representing most
of the major church groups was the "fly-by-nite.” '"any stations have d>itten u
on this lure, because nearly everyone assumes these are the true Amsterdam
representatives *

On learning that they night want to spend any and all program time in attacking
the Federal Council as "Communistic" I checked with the American Council
Secretary in Iowa who finally admitted such was thcur intention; whereupon I
told him unless he changed his mind he had better stay home* Then ensued one
of these "free speech" arguments, which was finally resolved by letting them
appear, not in an address but in an interview where their statements could be
challenged.

This group is well-financed, vigorous, and fanatic. It would be well for any
program director to double-check any representative they may send around to
avoid subsequent trouble from either permission to broadcast or denial,.

RBH-96

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2 c Attached is an opinion frorr our counsel, Marcus Cohn of Cohn and Marks
in re the so-called AVCO license renewal procedure issued as a proposed
ruling by the FCC,

The question of whether or not educational A?' stations should oppose the
ruling was raised by James Miles, director WBAA, Purdue University,

All NAEB AM stations should study the provisions of this proposed rule
(not yet made official) for the reason stations will have to begin
license renewal procedure four months ahead of expiration and will also
have to advertise in local papers the fact of their application for
renewal«

fine*

FROM: Richard B« Hull

President

Scanned from the National Association of Educational Broadcasters Records
at the Wisconsin Historical Society as part of
"Unlocking the Airwaves: Revitalizing an Early Public and Educational Radio Collection."

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